smallgoodthing

Listen to the solo work of, say, John Lennon and Paul McCartney - or just about any other musician who used to play with a band - and it’s easy to see the value of collaboration. There are certainly people out there who can go it entirely alone and come up with something brilliant. But I’m continually amazed at how different - and usually better - a work of art is when different minds take hold of it.

September 14, 2007 | Posted in Music

The Virgin of Small Plains

Yesterday in Kansas City my bank’s thermometer read 108 degrees the one time I ventured out of the house. The rest of the time I spent inside, in the air conditioning, reading this novel. I consumed the entire thing in a little over twelve hours.

August 20, 2007 | Posted in Words

Video of the Day: Small Sins

On September 25th you’ll be able to get what will be one of the year’s best albums: Mood Swings by the Toronto band Small Sins. This video is a live performance of what will be the second track on the album, “Morning Face.”

August 15, 2007 | Posted in Music

Clark and Michael

Michael Cera is a master of the awkward pause. If you are a fan of the dearly departed Arrested Devlopment, you know what I’m talking about. Nobody can turn a silent pause into comic gold like Cera. Click here to watch..

August 14, 2007 | Posted in Film

Video of the Day: Dan Deacon

People much cooler and more inside than I have known about Baltimore artist Dan Deacon since he began appearing at local clubs around 2003 or so, but he’s relatively new to me. Deacon has been described as an “absurdist” electronic musician for his goofy sense of style and flipped out, high-octane live performances.

August 14, 2007 | Posted in Film, Music

File Under: I Am Not Making This Up

The news that President George W. Bush has been suffering from Lyme Disease for more than a year really caught the attention of Daryl Hall, one-half of the world’s biggest-selling music duo of all time Daryl Hall & John Oates.

August 9, 2007 | Posted in Music

Mix Tape Vol. 3: Random Play

So for my third installment in a continuing series of mixtapes I decided to just put my iPod on random-play and take the first 20 songs it gave me. With a few minor edits, this is what it came up with.

August 5, 2007 | Posted in Music

Darkness Visible

William Styron’s “Darkness Visible” is short but it’s not an easy read. It’s all about Styron’s descent “into madness” just after his 60th birthday. Styron, who wrote “Sophie’s Choice,” was crippled, almost literally, by his depression.

July 30, 2007 | Posted in Words

Film Techniques Used by Hitchcock

This is interesting because of how simple the techniques are. My favorite is point of view editing which is the technique of showing the face of a character reacting and then cut to what he’s reacting to. Hitchock believes you can do this over and over to build tension and the audience will never tire of it. Click here to read all the techniques. (Via Kottke)

July 3, 2007 | Posted in Film

A Few Good Commercials

After years of cheesy recruiting commercials, the Marines have finally gotten it right. Instead of trying to convince potential recruits that they’ll learn a skill or be in great physical condition, the Corps has turned to the tried and true: nostalgia. Using film of Marines storming World War II beaches could be effective in tricking some into thinking that combat in Iraq will be just as glory-filled.

July 2, 2007 | Posted in Film

Recommended

Imitators: Before and After